Antabuse

Antabuse

(ăn`təbyo͞os), trade name for the drug tetraethylthiuram disulfide, used in the treatment of alcoholismalcoholism,disease characterized by impaired control over the consumption of alcoholic beverages. Alcoholism is a serious problem worldwide; in the United States the wide availability of alcoholic beverages makes alcohol the most accessible drug, and alcoholism is the most.....Click the link for more information.. Also called sulfiram, Antabuse is nontoxic, but it alters the metabolism of alcohol in the body, making it impossible for one who is taking the drug to drink without experiencing severe discomfort. When alcohol is present the drug increases the concentration of acetaldehyde in the body, causing symptoms resembling those of a bad hangover: the individual feels hot, the face becomes flushed, the neck and head throb, and nausea, vomiting, and headache may follow. Small quantities of alcohol, such as from food sauces and cough medicines, and even inhaled traces from shaving lotions and varnishes, may induce the same symptoms. The drug Temposil, or citrated calcium carbamide, has the same function as Antabuse, but is weaker and safer. The therapeutic use of Antabuse was discovered in the 1930s when workers exposed to tetraethylthiuram disulfide, a chemical used in the rubber industry, became ill after drinking alcoholic beverages.

ii) She also attends Dr C, where the giving of periodic blood tests and the taking of Antabuse [a drug prescribed to recovering alcoholics to help them abstain from drinking alcohol] are vital ingredients to prevent her returning to alcohol.

Brewer, Controlled Trials of Antabuse in Alcoholism: The Importance of Supervision and Adequate Dosage, 86 ACTA PSYCHIATRICA SCANDINAVICA SUPPLEMENTUM 51, 51-55 (1992) (demonstrating the importance of close supervision to the successful use of Antabuse).

Over the years she tried a number of tricks to limit Bishop's drinking, such as hiring a housekeeper to keep an eye on things and empty hidden bottles of alcohol, and getting a prescription for Antabuse, which she sometimes persuaded Bishop to ingest.

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